Comic strip 'Doonesbury' predicts Obama win: Newspapers split over whether to run Wednesday strip

[DeepModem Mom]

Source: Los Angeles Times

Garry Trudeau's "Doonesbury" is predicting a victory for Barack Obama, and newspaper editors around the country are debating whether to publish the comic no matter the results of the election.

Wednesday's strip is set in Iraq and features military characters huddled around a television that proclaims "And it's official -- Barack Obama has won. . . ."

In an e-mail to The Times, Trudeau said newspapers should run the strip because ". . . polling data gives McCain a 3.7% chance of victory. There's a greater risk that their presses will break down on election day. So I've been encouraging editors to choose hope over fear. And reminding them that if I'm wrong, it'll be my face that'll be covered with egg, not theirs."

Trudeau said he's not worried about the comic if his prediction is wrong. "I'd be a lot more worried about the country than the strip. One reporter has already suggested I just carry on with an alternative universe in which Obama wins. It's not a crazy idea."...

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-doonesbury1-2008nov01,0,7611602.story

[tekisui]

1. Way to go Trudeau! Help people get on the Bandwagon!

[dweller]

2. i'd rather be in an alternative universe

if he loses.

dp

[uppityperson]

4. Me too. K&R for Gary Trudeau

[barbtries]

22. we're all (me anyway)

making sure not to get complacent, but what everybody seems to know even if they won't say it out loud is that the only way mccain wins is if they steal it.

it seems as if we entered an alternative universe when the SCOTUS gave gw the WH so long ago. it was a wrong that just multiplied to where we are today. i'm ready for reality with barack obama as president.

[LiberalFighter]

3. About 4 - 6 weeks the odds of our papers press breaking down for the Friday edition was nearly 100%.

I think since they changed the format of the weekend edition which was a magazine format breakdowns have been 0.

[Ian David]

5. I'm afraid people might see the strip and think they don't have to vote Tuesday. n/t

[DeepModem Mom]

7. I think the strip wouldn't run until Wednesday morning. nt

[NEDem]

It's Wednesday's strip.

[Ian David]

11. Ahh... that's okay then. n/t

[Zhade]

6. A 3.7% CHANCE FOR MCLAME TO WIN. IF OBAMA DOESN'T, THAT MEANS *THEFT*.

NT!

[Ohio Joe]

8. I agree

Rock-and-f'king-roll.... GOBAMA!

[NJCPA]

9. Just no Dewey won the election! Actually if Mac won it

Just no Dewey won the election! Actually if Mac won it would be an altered universe. All the life would be sucked out of the country, somewhat like a neutron bomb. The buildings would be there, but no life.

[mascarax]

10. Trudeau and Jane Pauley came to MN for Franken

Has he been campaigning for others?

[Ian David]

12. Where does he get that 3.7% figure? n/t

[Hissyspit]

13. FiveThirtyEight.com

Look at the Win Percentage graphic: http://www.fivethirtyeight.com

It's Nate Silver and company's overall odds based on all their poll numbers, etc. Methodology is described here: http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2008/03/frequently-asked-questions-last-revised.html

[msanthrope]

14. Nate Silver's prior business was Baseball Prospectus....dude

knows his numbers.........

[hedgehog]

15. Look at the article - the problem isn't that the strip predicts an Obama win,

the problem is that the strip shows soldiers being excited about an Obama win!

[Towlie]

16. Why is that a problem?

[Hissyspit]

18. There has been plenty of evidence that the rank-and-file grunts are predominantly

supporting Obama. It is the officer corps that is overwhelmingly Republican and I wouldn't be surprised at how many of them are supporting Obama.

[Joe Chi Minh]

26. Precisely! It's why the Republicans were not keen on having their votes counted. In

fact, I'm not sure they were.

[semillama]

27. Many officers are

I am proud to say, however, that my friend who is an Army officer is supporting Obama!

[demigoddess]

17. run it, freedom of the press.

freedom to make a mistake and/or tell the people's wishes.

[FailureToCommunicate]

24. Ditto! Isn't that what we're supposedly fighting for??!!?? Opps, I

forgot, we're 'fightin' 'em over there so we don't have to fight 'em over here' (the terrorists, that is).

[Seldona]

19. There are all sorts of ways to deal with the unthinkable.

That they would even think of not running it is wrong imo.

[Omnibus]

20. I've been wanting to live in the alternate U where Gore took office...

...for nearly eight years now.

When Obama's inaugurated, it will be the first time in eight years I can live happily in the now.

[Shipwack]

23. Don't forget Gore's 2006 State of the union address!

http://politicalhumor.about.com/od/algore/v/algoresnl.htm

My favorite part is still this:

"Right now in the second week of May 2006, we are facing perhaps the worst gas crisis in history. We have way too much gasoline! Gas is down to nineteen cents a gallon and the oil companies are hurting. I know that I am partly to blame, by insisting that cars run on trash.

I am therefore proposing a Federal bail-out to our oil companies because hey, if it were the other way around, you know the oil companies would help us."

[Kalifornia.Kid]

21. Worse case scenario ...

Trudeau can put out a strip whereby Cindy McCain wakes up all upset, finds John McCain in the shower who tells her she just had a bad dream. And that's when the alternative universe begins.

[crikkett]

25. sounds a little like a sigil

96.3% chance of victory... nice.

[Exultant Democracy]

28. McCain camp, spokesman "We hope the strip proves to be as predictive as it is consistently lame."

WTF does that mean. Is he saying that the comic is consistently lame and if so being "as predictive as it is constantly lame" would may that it would be correct in its prediction. These people don't know how to think and it shows.

[Zhade]

29. That's exactly what he said, though he's too fucking stupid to realize it!

NT!

[crossroads]

30. Stand firm Trudeau! So mote it be!